Leverkusen have mountain to climb

Bayer Leverkusen coach Robin Dutt knows the odds are stacked against his team as they prepare to face Barcelona in the Champions League.

Bundesliga club Leverkusen were beaten 3-1 at home on February 14 in the first leg of their round-of-16 tie with holders Barca.

They travel to Camp Nou for the return fixture on Wednesday, and Dutt does not anticipate anything less than another stern examination from the La Liga champions.

“There are lots of things that worry me about facing Barcelona,” Dutt said.

“I have watched hundreds of Barcelona games and they always have very high ball possession.”

“What can we do with the little time they let us have the ball? That’s the question.”

“On paper the situation looks favourable for Barcelona because we should have been more offensive in the first leg. The important thing is to play a good match for the 4000 Bayer fans travelling here.”

Leverkusen were thoroughly outclassed during the opening 45 minutes of the first leg at the BayArena.

They fought back to equalise during a strong start to the second half, and Dutt needs his team to reach a similar level if they are to have any chance of reaching the quarter-finals.

“If we play like we did in the first half of the first leg we won’t be happy but if we play as we did in the second half, in which we pressured a lot more, Barca will be stretched,” he said.

“We have to defend well, fight, look to score and take advantage of our opportunities.”